Conditioning apparatus



April 5, 1938. s. HUDONNNS ET AL 2,112,955

CONDITIONING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 29, 1934 .INVENTOR.

BY 50M) /7,/4 06'60f7 5 2522. 15 MA'4M ATTORNEYS.

Patented Apr. 5,. 1938 l CONDITIONING APPARATUS Sewell H. Downs,'Kalamazoo, Mich., and Robert A. Wasson,

Brooklyn,

N. Y., assignorsto ,Clarage Fan Company, Kalamazoo, Mich. Application September 29, 1934, Serial No. 746,168

v 3 Claims.

The objects of this invention are:

First, to provide a system for ventilating or Second, to provide such a system having a variable volume control suitable for use with a constant speed motor and one which has no critical point, combined with registers introducing air into the room at constant velocity.

Third, to provide a register adapted to introduce air into aroom at constant velocity regardless of the quantity of air furnished to the register.

Further objects and advantages pertaining to details of construction and operation will appear from the description to follow. A preferred embodiment of our inventionis illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a view of our constant velocity register showing the duct; broken away and a fan equipped with a volume control means that is most suitable for use 'in our system.

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic view of a conditioning system embodying our invention.

Fig. 3 is a view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 4 showing the details of our register construction.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1 showing further details of our register.

The parts will be identified by their numerals of reference which are the same in all the views.

I is a room to be conditioned. 2 is a conditioner, 3 is a centrifugal fan having a rotatable fan wheel I, and 5 is a constant speed motor, and i is a volume control means for the fan. This means has a plurality of sector-shaped blades 1 adapted tobe rotated on spider rods 8 so as to close the inlet 9 to the fan or, in partially opened position, to impart to air entering the fan a spin in the direction of rotation of the fan wheel. The position of these blades is controlled by any suitable control means such as I. which may be manual or may be under control of conditions in the room.- The specific volume control means is shown'and described in the copending application of Sewell H. Downs, Serial No. 598,784, filed March 14, 1932, for Vortex control, and need not be further described here.

II is a duct leading from the fan to the room and I2 is a duct leading from the room to the I8 is a constantvelocity register conditioner. having a frame It with an opening I! therein for passage of air. The opening II is divided as by partition I! into a plurality ofhorizo'ntai passages and in each passage is a blade I! pivoted at It to control thepassage of air through the opening. Each blade is pivoted on a shaft I9 and extends into a space 20 at one side of the opening 15 which is closed by a housing 2| -to keep dirt from the opening and to prevent interference with the adjustment of the counterweights 22. Counterweights 22 are mounted on the shaft I! by means .of a split member 23 screw threaded to receive a screw gg to clamp the counterweight to the shaft; Extendingfrom the split member is a shaft 25 screw threaded to receive the weight 22 and provided'with a lock nut 26 for'holding the weight in adjusted position. Each of the members I6 is turned downward at its front Nil to improve the appearance of the front of the register, and the blades l'l are turned up as at 21 to present a neat and finished appearance at the front of the register. I In operation of the system, air passing through the register exerts a force on the blade I! tending to force it to open position. Counterweights 22 are so arranged that as the volume of air passing through the register decreases, the weights 22 tend to swing the blades IT to close the passages l5 and the blades and counterweights are so arranged that as the blades swing to open position the counterweights exert less downward force and the blades l'l present a smaller projected area to the air passing through the register than they do in a more fully closed position. As the blades move to the more fully closed position, the counterweights 22, exert a greater force, compensating for the greater projected area of the blades subject to the force of the air and the blades adjust themselves to the quantity of air passing through, permitting air to pass through only at constant velocity. v

It will be appreciated that in such a system, when the smallest volume of air is passing through the register, without our constant velocity register circulation in the room would be diminished, but by maintaining the velocity constant it is possible to induce a circulation in the room with the smaller amount of air passing through the register, thus contributing to the comfort of the occupants of the room that is' being ventilated or conditioned. By using our constant velocity register with the specific volume control means, we obtain a much more economical operation of the system, and due to the fact that there is no critical point in such a volume control means as would be the case with dampers, it is possibleto obtain a very satisfactory operation of the system to meet all required conditions.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a conditioning system, the combination of a room to be conditioned, a constant speed centrifugal fan having a rotatable fan wheel, a duct leading from 'the fan to the room, a volume control for the fan comprising a plurality of blades adapted to close off air or in open position to impart to air entering the fan a swirl in. the direction of rotation of the fan wheel, a constant velocity register in said duct leading to said room comprising a frame, an opening therein for the passage of air .to the room, and means in said opening constantly tending to restrict said.

opening and arranged to be moved to an intermediate position toward open position by the flow of air to said register an amount in proportion to the volume of air flowing to said register, whereby as the quantity of air passing through the register decreases the opening is automatically restricted to maintain the velocity of air passing therethrough constant.

-2. In a conditioning system, the combination of a room to be conditioned, means supplying varying volumes of air to the room, a duct leading from said means to the room, a. constant velocity register in said duct leading to said room comprising a frame, an opening therein for the passage of air to the room, and means in said openingconstantly tending to restrict said opening. and arranged to be moved to an intermediate position toward open position by the flow of air to said register an amount in proportion to the volume of air flowing to said register, whereby as the quantity of air passing through the register decreases the opening is automatically restricted to maintain the velocity of air passing therethrough constant.

3,- A register comprising a frame, an opening therein for the passage of air, and means in said opening constantly tending to restrict said opening and arranged to be moved to an intermediate position toward open position by the flow of air to said register 'an amount in proportion to the volume of air'flowing to said register, whereby as the quantity of air passing therethrough deconstant.

SEW'ELL H. DOWNS. ROBERT A. WASSON. 

